Under the Moon
by CygnusFang
Summary: Naruto talks to the voice in his head.
1. The Headband

"Hey Kurama," a boy whispered to the voice in his head, stretching out on the roof of the flowershop he happened to be on top of. "Do you think they'll acknowledge me now? Now that I have a headband, now that I'm one of them?" He gazed up at the nearly full moon, waiting for his imaginary friend to respond.

The voice was quiet for a few moments before it responded, its normally gruff and sarcastic voice soft and comforting. " _Not yet, kit. Give it time, they need to see what you can do_."

Naruto nodded, though it was a while before he said, "yeah. I'll prove to them that I deserve respect. Then I'll grab the hat from Jiji. He won't have to worry about anything, ever again..." He yawned, turning onto his side and curled up. "Kurama, will you still be here when I wake up? You won't leave me alone again, right?" Naruto muttered, drifting closer to the world of dreams with every passing second.

Kurama waited a few moments, by which time Naruto was already asleep. " _I'll try not to, kit. You don't deserve to be alone. No one does_."


	2. Mercenary

Naruto patrolled around Tazuna's home. He left a kage bunshin inside, to make it seem like he was already asleep. "Hey Kurama, d'ya think I can become friends with that Zabuza guy?" he questioned aloud.

The deep rumble of a laugh echoed gently through his skull. " _You want to make good with the man that almost killed your sensei?_ " Kurama couldn't help but chuckle again.

"Well, no one deserves to be alone, right?" Naruto replied offhandedly, finishing the trap he was working on.

The deep laugh immediately stopped, as if time had stopped for the voice in his head. Naruto briefly wondered if he said something wrong, before Kurama said, " _yeah. You're right. I'll help you however I can, kit_."

Naruto beamed, continuing his trap setting for tomorrow, when they were all to go to the bridge. "He's a mercenary, right? I wonder if he got paid beforehand..."


	3. Tournament

" _Hey kit_ ," the voice in Naruto's head said, " _how do you plan on dealing with those eyes of his?_ " Kurama asked.

"Huh? Oh, you mean Neji. I hadn't really thought of it," Naruto said. "Kage Bunshin splits chakra equally, right? Wouldn't I be able to fool him with that?"

" _You would, but I have a better idea.._ " Kurama began, and Naruto could almost feel that wicked grin of the voice in his head. " _How about you blind him instead?_ "

Naruto's eyes widened, a twinkle of mischief sparkling in his cerulean orbs. "I'm listening," he said.

" _Snap at him. Gather chakra into your fingers, and release it with a snap_ ," was all Kurama said.

It took a few moments for Naruto to put together what he meant. Then he began to cackle. "With how much chakra I have and how bad my control is..." he couldn't contain his grin. Then a thought crossed his mind. "I wonder if Zabuza and Haku will show up to watch..."


	4. Truth

Naruto woke up somewhere he'd never been, but was at the same time incredibly familiar. "What the..." he muttered to himself, standing up in the ankle high water at his feet. He followed a path he somehow knew to be his destination, as if it were always in his head.

Naruto stopped in front of a large set of bars. A rumbling voice, familiar to him, stopped the words about to escape his lips.

" _Kit... It's good to truly meet you,_ " the voice he'd heard for years in his head rang out from behind the bars. The large eyes of the Kyuubi no Yoko gazed out at boy. He wasn't sure what to expect, and it certainly wasn't for Naruto to run into the cage and hug the giant fox's face.

"Kurama! You're not just a voice in my head! I can sit down and talk to you, and, and, and..." Naruto couldn't help but sob into Kurama's fur.

Kurama wrapped one of his tails around the little human, his equivalent of a hug. " _Thank you, kit..._ " he whispered softly. " _Whenever you need my power, it is at your disposal. Whatever I can do to help you, all you need do is ask. After all, we're friends, right?_ " That caused Naruto to sob louder.

"Friends..."


End file.
